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A gunman who police said may be connected to a double homicide fired a shot in the emergency room of the Jesse Brown Veterans Administration Medical Center on the West Side early this morning and has barricaded himself inside, police said.

The shot was fired into the ceiling, and no one was hurt, said Harrison Area Deputy Police Chief Wayne Gulliford, who was on the scene. The hospital is at 820 S. Damen Ave.

CBS-Ch. 2 reported that the man walked into the emergency room, fired the shot, pointed the gun at his head, asked for help and told a medical technician that he had just killed his parents.

At shortly before 4 a.m., the gunman was reported to be by himself in a treatment room in the emergency room and was talking to police by phone, Gulliford said. Earlier, police had described the barricade as a hostage situation, but later said the gunman was not holding anyone captive.

Officials saw no need to evacuate the hospital because the gunman was isolated, Gulliford said.

Police responded in force to the hospital at 1:27 a.m. after receiving a call from VA security that a shot had been fired in the emergency room.

Damen Avenue between Taylor Street and Ogden Avenue was closed to traffic.

Police said they were investigating to see if there was a connection between the VA hospital situation and a married couple found dead Monday night in the kitchen of their West Side home in the 2200 block of South Kildare Avenue.

The couple's son, who does not live at the home, flagged down police at 9:15 p.m. after he was unable to get inside, Police News Affairs Officer Ronald Gaines said.